Hello again~

We had a relaxing weekend around here. We watched basketball on tv Friday night and spent most of Saturday afternoon running errands. Lauren and I enjoyed spending the whole weekend with Chad, who is usually so busy on weekdays that we don't see much of him :( Yesterday, Chad finished his most recent "project":

Unfortunately, I received some very sad news yesterday evening. The mother of one of my kindergarten students passed away yesterday in her sleep. She was a single mother in her 30's and leaves behind a third-grade daughter and a kindergarten son. Luckily the children have a grandmother in town that they have always been very, very close to. Please pray for little Ilisia and Alex as they grieve for the loss of their mommy. Thanks.

Mindy

I couldn't resist :)

I know I posted two different messages yesterday, but I took more pictures this morning and had to share :) I realize I'm biased since I'm her mommy, but I just think Lauren is adorable :) And she's a ham for the camera!!

Check out that big 'ole belly!

Do you see a problem with this picture? Hmmmm...maybe this is why she had a diaper blowout yesterday. It would help if I put the things on correctly :-)

~Mindy

Lessons learned today...

I know I posted a message already today, but I have to share a few lessons learned on our outing today.

Lesson #1- If you forget to refill the baby wipes in the diaper bag before you leave, the baby WILL have a huge diaper explosion when you get to your destination. Poop will be up and down both arms and legs as well as in the creases of her neck. You will be forced to use kleenex--the generic kind that feels remarkably like sandpaper. If this happens to you while visiting a nursing home, as it did to me today, don't just assume that wet wipes or baby wipes are easily accessible. I couldn't find any.

Lesson #2- When you are waiting in a LONG line at the grocery store and your baby suddenly starts screaming her head off, employees magically appear and open a "closed" register aisle just for you AND empty your cart for you...all in less than ten seconds. It's true!

Lesson #3- No matter how many curveballs life throws you to stress you out, very few things will amaze you more than seeing a 91-year-old man gently rocking your baby and singing softly to her.

THIS JUST IN- Lesson #4- When you are trying to type and nurse a baby all at the same time...she WILL spit up all over your lap and it WILL seep through the zipper of your brand new pair of jeans leaving you with soggy underwear. Just be warned...it could happen. Now I have to go clean up.

See cute pictures in the message below :)
~Mindy

My little cuddle bug~

Happy Thursday :) We're having a fun week together! The weather was pretty nice (mid 40's) during the first half of the week, so we enjoyed some long walks in the neighborhood. Yesterday, my friend and co-worker Nicole came over and brought her 20-month old daughter Kayden with her for a visit. Kayden was adorable. She wandered all around and helped me realize what kind of child-proofing I will have to do around the house in the near future!! Lauren enjoyed watching her and nearly giggled when Westin stole Kayden's cheese sandwich right out of her hand! Naughty dog! I'll bet he can't wait for when Lauren is eating solid foods--especially from a high-chair. I can picture it already :)

Lauren is taking a long nap in her crib right now. Last night, she slept from about 8:45pm until 6:30am. I fed her at 6:30 but she didn't want to go back to sleep after that so I brought her into bed with me (don't tell Chad!!!!). We both fell asleep cuddling together and slept in until about 9:30. Woohoo!! Here's more pictures of my little cuddle bug:

She's discovered her tongue this week. She is constantly sticking it out at us :)
Enjoying her new quilt from Grandma Lucas.

Lauren isn't the only one who likes the new quilt.

It's a stare-down.

A bubble bath with daddy. We have realized that Lauren's other tub, from Beth and Sara, is more meant for when she's a little bigger. It's not very soft for babies who can't yet hold their heads up. So we've been using the softer travel tub lately and she loves it. We discovered that by using it in our own bathtub, we can fill it up a little more. Plus, if Chad forgets to plug the drain in the baby tub (again) before filling it, we (he) won't cause a massive flood (again).

Today, we're going to the grocery store and stopping by a nursing home to visit an old friend. For the past three years, I've had an older gentleman (early 90's) volunteer in my classroom 5 days a week. Literally...he NEVER missed a day, except when the weather was unsafe for him to drive in. His health has taken a turn for the worse and now he's been moved to a nursing home. We visited him two weeks ago and we're going to go back today. He's such a sweet man and is very lonely. I think it cheers him up to see Lauren.

Have a great day!

Love,

Mindy and the cuddle-bug

A plug for my sister's music :)

I put a new post with pictures of Lauren's visit on here this morning, but forgot to include a "plug" for Holly's music. Check out www.myspacemusic.com/hollylucasmusic to hear seven new songs she has just completed. Scroll a little down her page and you can play her songs. My personal favorite is "He Was Ready To Go".

Enjoy :)

Meeting Great-Grandpa Mac

We made it to Rice Lake! We ended up getting 15 inches of snow on Friday, so we postponed our drive until Saturday morning. Lauren did very well on the drive. It takes about 5 hours to get there and she slept soundly for the first 4 hours. Just as we arrived in Eau Claire (with one hour left in our drive), she woke up crying. We pulled over at a Panera and I fed her in the car. Then she got a clean diaper and we were off to complete our drive. Luckily, she slept the rest of the way and we made it peacefully to Rice Lake. We had a great (albeit short) visit and Lauren got to meet her great-grandpa Mac! She also met my cousins, Kristal and Dedra, and their families.

My cousin Kristal's little boy Zach is just 10 days older than Lauren. This was their first time meeting great-grandpa.

Here's grandpa with his five great-grandchildren.

"My great-grandpa is number 1!"
So precious.
"Happy Easter everybody!"

We drove back home yesterday afternoon. We had a little more difficult of a drive this time. Lauren had a screaming fit only a little more than an hour into our drive. We stopped at a McDonalds where I fed her (in the car) and she proceeded to have two dirty diapers. We ended up being there for more than half an hour while she cried almost the entire time (except when I was feeding her). We finally just had to put her back in her carseat and get back on the highway. This time, I sat in the backseat beside her and was able to keep her calm (and mostly asleep) for the rest of the drive.

Saturday night, Lauren slept well in her Pack-n-Play for the first time. She did wake up for a 2:00a.m. feeding, but went right back to sleep afterwards. Last night, here at home, she woke up again for a 2:00am feeding. I guess I shouldn't have complained about the pain when she sleeps through the night!!

Have a great week~

Love,

Mindy & Lauren

Mother Nature's Cruel Joke....

I'm not talking about getting 12 inches of snow in late March, although that's cruel too. I'm talking about the joy...and pain...of a baby who begins to sleep through the night. Let's just say that after two months of getting up a few times each night, I've had lots of times where I literally felt like a sleep-deprived zombie- a feeling that only other new moms can relate to. Well, we finally reached the major milestone where Lauren sleeps through the night. Great, right??? You'd think that would mean that I'd finally be getting lots of sleep.


Here's the cruel joke part. Lauren sleeps through the night and thus....I experience excruciating pain due to going too long without feeding her!!! Lauren slept from 9pm until WE HAD TO WAKE HER UP at 6:30am so that I could get some pain relief. This is the cruel joke that Mother Nature plays on nursing mothers. The pain was so bad that I think getting my thumb slammed in a car door would have felt much better. I know what many of you are probably thinking. "Why didn't Mindy just pump milk instead of waking Lauren up?" You must not be aware of Newton's FOURTH law of physics...as soon as a nursing mother relieves herself with a breastpump, the baby will wake up hungry and want to nurse from her now empty milk sources (and will refuse a bottle). Happens every time!


Not sure if our trip to Rice Lake is still going to take place. The snow is falling hard and the television meteorologists are talking about popping the corks on champagne bottles because we're about to break records for the second snowiest winter of all time. Yuck. More than 100 inches of snow in a winter. Fun. We'll keep you posted.

One other bit of news- I've decided to extend my maternity leave by another month. My return date is now Friday, May 2. I just can't bring myself to part with my little girl for a long work day yet. She is just too young and needs her mommy most of all :)
Happy Easter!

Happy Spring!

Hello! As I look out my family room window right now, I hope that Lauren wakes up soon. It's beautiful outside and I'd like to take her and Westin for a walk. She was really fussy this morning though and only took a 45-minute morning nap. Now she's going on 3.5 hours for her afternoon nap. I took a bunch of new photos of my little girl last night and this morning and am excited to share them with you :)

A few of you have asked if she's still sleeping through the night. Last Thursday and Friday, she did. But since then, she's been waking up again at 4a.m.. Sometimes she'll go right back to sleep after I feed her, but other times she thinks she should just be awake for the day. Those days are tough for me...

Here's my smiley girl! Thanks to Jason and Jackie for the adorable headband!

"Hello, I'm new here". Too cute.

Watching American Idol last night with Daddy.

Here's a "hair-shot". She actually lost quite a bit of her baby hair within the last month but I've noticed it getting thicker again this week.

Best buds.

Allie LOVES soaking up the sun. Goofy cat.

Have a happy Easter! We're going to try to drive to Rice Lake this weekend so Lauren can meet her great-grandfather for the first time. Unfortunately, I just heard that we are in for a winter storm with 3-6 inches of snow on Friday. That may postpone our trip. I'll let you know~

Love,

Mindy and Lauren

Two Months Old!

The past two months have gone by so quickly...too quickly. I look at Lauren and can't believe she isn't my little tiny newborn anymore. She's growing so fast! Lauren is ready for bathtime in her robe and slippers.
Watching American Idol just before her bath. She loves that show. She just stares and stares at the screen when it's on :-)

Lauren had her 2-month checkup at the doctor today. She now weighs 10lbs 7oz, which puts her at the 50th percentile for weight. Her length is 22.75 inches, which is at the 90th percentile. The doc said her length is actually more like that of a 3-month old. Doesn't surprise us at all :)

"I'm gonna be HOW tall???"

Last night, Lauren slept through the night for the first time! Chad put her to bed at 10:00p.m. and she slept until 11:00a.m., with only one feeding at 6:00a.m.. So she slept for just under 13 hours!

Yesterday and today, we've taken advantage of the great weather and gone for two long walks around the neighborhood. Now those of you who are reading this in warmer locales might think I'm nuts, but it was 50 degrees and sunny here :) When we've just gone through several months with temps in the twenties and much colder...well, 50 degrees feels like 70! So I bundled Lauren up really well and took her and Westin for two-mile walks each day. It felt great!

Ready for a walk!

Lauren's "bare" feet. Aren't they adorable?

Have a great weekend!

Love,

Mindy and Lauren

Enjoy!

Hello! We had a fun, relaxing weekend at home. Saturday night, we hosted our Dinner Club friends at our place. Lauren seemed to love all the attention she received from all of our friends (okay...from Jason and the ladies)!

Here's Jason, practicing fatherhood!
Lauren wasn't the only one getting lots of attention Saturday night!

Best friends for life.

Daddy's little girl.

Wherever Lauren is....Westin is there too :)

Good night!

Love,

Mindy and Lauren

My adorable baby girl :)

Hello! I decided to have another round of "photo fun" with Lauren today and wanted to share some new pictures with you. Isn't she adorable?

Check out her long legs (not to mention, her big feet)!! She gets these from her Aunt Karlee and Uncle Ryan. We're going to have a tall girl on our hands :)

Too cute~

Is he EVER far from Lauren's side? Nope. In fact, he's always looking for her fingers so he can cover them in doggy kisses.

It's kind of hard to see, but Lauren is checking out Westin out of the corner of her eyes.

I thought this was kinda cute. Lauren's holding onto Grandpa Lucas' hand.

My parents were here Tuesday evening and Lauren fell asleep in her grandpa's arms.

Lauren loves watching the mobile that hangs above her bed. Her great-great grandmother got it for her~

Do these pants come in adult sizes? They're so cute!

Lauren has been doing very well. She is growing like a weed and has officially outgrown most of her newborn-sized clothing. That's good because her clothes take up two full closets, so it's good to clear some of them out of there (okay, okay...to make room for more new clothes).

Lauren slept like a champ last night. She fell asleep at 9:00p.m. and slept until 8:15a.m with only one (very brief) feeding at 4:30a.m.. I was really happy because both times (9pm and 4:30am), she fell asleep completely on her own in her crib after being put in there while she was still wide awake. This is important to me because I really want her to be able to fall asleep on her own--I don't want to get into a habit of needing to rock her to sleep each time or needing to stand beside her crib and pat her back until she falls asleep. Once in awhile that's nice, but it's just not a habit I want to get her into.

What else is new? Well, she smiles more often now and has starting making cooing sounds once in awhile. She's also started "playing" with toys, so I made a trip to Target to pick out a few fun baby toys. She loves to watch them and gets excited about toys that light up or make noise.

Yesterday was my first afternoon spent away from my little girl. My parents were here so I left her in their care and went to visit the dentist and also to get a haircut. I missed her while I was gone but it was good to get out of the house for awhile.

Have a great day!

Love,

Mindy and Lauren